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Defense Secretary Gilberto "Gibo" Teodoro said that if China forcefully towed away the sunken warship BRP Sierra Madre, it would be an act of war against the Philippines.
A report from a Chinese news outlet claimed that Beijing was mulling sanctions against Manila, including the towing of the BRP Sierra Madre—a World War II-era warship that was deliberately run aground in 1999 in Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea and continues to serve as an outpost for the country.
"'Yung Sierra Madre BRP, barko ng Republika ng Pilipinas ano at kung iyan ay tinangka, or, may mangyari diyan at sa kadahilanan ng ginamitan ng puwersa, eh, iyan ay act of war against the Republic of the Philippines," Teodoro said.
(The Sierra Madre BRP, it is a ship of the Republic of the Philippines, and if there is an attempt, or if something happened to it by force, that is an act of war against the Republic of the Philippines.)
Teodoro made it clear that an "act of war" is different from a "state of war," as only the President and Congress can declare war.
The Defense Secretary said that because the BRP Sierra Madre is a warship, any offensive act against it is an act of war.
"Any threat against BRP Sierra Madre will be taken very seriously because it will be an act against a military vessel of the Republic of the Philippines," Teodoro said.
Asked if the Philippines will envoke its Mutual Defense Treaty with the United States if China boarded the BRP Sierra Madre, Teodoro said that that "the possibility is open".
However, it would be presidential decision if it happened, Teodoro said.
Diplomatic ties between Manila and Beijing were strained anew after Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Jing Quan recently said China would easily win if it used force in the West Philippine Sea.
Several Filipino officials called for Quan’s expulsion, urging President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. to declare the envoy persona non grata.
Teodoro said that while the threats have become more overt now, they have always been present.
"It just goes to show you that whatever supposedly goodwill that they are doing is a weapon and they are weaponizing it. And it also serves as a lesson for us to make our economy more resilient and to build up our industries and to firm up our country," Teodoro said.
"We are constantly being threatened, subtly, and now more overtly," he added.
Tensions between China and the Philippines have increased due to the territorial row in the West Philippine Sea. Despite the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruling in favor of the Philippines in 2016, China has continuously disregarded the verdict and claimed most of the South China Sea for itself. — VDV, GMA News